Kid Icarus: Daybreak
by Temporal Break
Summary: It's been three years since Hades's hostile invasion of Earth ended, and a familiar (and massive) threat is returning to Earth. However, it'll take more than Skyworld's only angel to take it down; this time, the Free-For-All fighters are coming along to fight the threat and save Earth
1. Prologue: An Un-average Day in Skyworld

**Hello, peoples of the internet, and welcome to Kid Icarus: Daybreak! A bit of history behind this story before we begin.**

**I have seen stories about Pit. I have seen stories about Viridi. I have even seen stories about the little girl and dog from Chapter 18. But do you know who doesn't seem to get any attention? The fighters from multiplayer mode. That's where this story comes in.**

**Just a quick note; I have to put the fighters as OCs since, well, there's no category for them in the character select. This chapter introduces the plot, and the next chapter will introduce the fighters.**

**This story will also have a more infrequent update schedule as I have another story (more of a series) that I am working on. Don't think that I won't pay attention to the quality of this story, though; I like to make sure all my works are top notch.**

**Thanks so much, and enjoy Chapter 1 of Kid Icarus: Daybreak!**

* * *

Chapter 1: An Un-Average Day in Skyworld

Ah, Skyworld. A beautiful and majestic kingdom, residing above the world of man like a Grecian guardian angel. Hundreds of temples and palaces rested on huge swathes of suspended land, with winged centurions flitting from place to place like an otherworldly beehive. At the center of the floating islands lay Palutena's Temple, a massive sanctuary which housed both the goddess of light and her angelic servant, Pit. Yes, it was truly a haven of peace and tranquility-

"AUUUUUGH!"

-most of the time.

A centurion sweeping the court outside Palutena's Temple recognized the cry of his goddess and gasped, "Lady Palutena! She's in trouble!" He immediately dashed toward the gates to the temple, leaving a spinning broom in his wake. When he finally reached the door, the handles wouldn't move; they were bolted shut. As the shin-high soldier tugged at the door, he heard more screams produced behind it.

"Oh, man, why couldn't I have been reincarnated as a strongarm?" the centurion moaned, slumped against the door. "At least then I could…wait a minute. I need a strongarm centurion!"

Looking around, he spotted a large centurion with tiny wings carrying a marble pillar two times his size. The smaller centurion sighed in relief, and then approached the giant, yelling, "Hey! Joel! I need you to break down this door for me!"

The giant angel turned to face the smaller one and slowly replied, "I don't think I should do that, Carl. Miss Palutena told me to take this pillar to the new gym in the south side and I don't want to make her mad."

"But Lady Palutena is the one in trouble, Joel! Come on, it's for the good of Skyworld!" the short soldier pleaded, well aware of the potential danger that his goddess could be in. The giant, however, just stood in the court with a befuddled look on his face.

"I dunno…" the giant mumbled, debating whether to help his friend or continue his task.

"I'll lend you my copy of Hello Kitty Party."

The strongarm's face lit up, but soon turned dark again as he pondered, "But Carl, I don't have anything I can use to break the door down."

"What about the pillar?"

*FWA-BOOM!*

The short centurion eyes went wide as he saw the dust covered entryway destroyed by the ten-ton stone support.

"T-Thanks, Joel." The centurion stuttered, flicking a grey cartridge behind his back as he rushed toward the pillar-demolished gates. When the giant caught the game, he grinned, pulled a Nintendo DS Lite out of his toga and put in the cartridge.

"He, he, he. I've missed you, Hello Kitty," he giggled as the title lit up the screens.

Meanwhile, the shorter soldier scurried over the debris, hacking up dust but determine to save his goddess…

…and was nailed in the head with a GameCube controlled for his troubles.

Shaking his head, the centurion looked up to see a fuming Pautena staring him down. He unsteadily rose to his feet and bowed, reciting, "My lady. I live live to serve and serve to live. What ails you?"

"What 'ails' me? I was just about to beat Pit in a match of Super Bash Sisters when my front door was smashed in by a building support! " she hissed, pointing to dust covered pillar sitting next to a sofa and TV set up in the middle of the chamber.

"It's Super Smash Bros!" a young voice yelled from behind the sofa. An angel, looking not much older than 13, leapt over the sofa and stood by Palutena's side. "Besides, I'd be winning by a landslide if we agreed not to use items…"

"But items make the game more fun! Besides, you probably wouldn't do much better even if we weren't using items," the goddess chuckled.

Despite this small truth, Pit mumbled, "Items are still cheap though…"

Palutena gave a small grin of amusement, then turned to face the centurion with a stern look. "As for you," she declared, pointing a sharpened nail in his direction, "You are responsible for repairing the doorway and will not leave until the task is completed. Is that understood?"

The centurion's jaw fell agape, then closed as he accepted his fate. "Yes, Lady Palutena," he murmured, sullenly walking toward the now wrecked entrance. Satisfied with the response, Palutena turned back to the television while Pit hung back with the centurion.

"Hey, Carl. If you need any extra robot power, there's a Cherubot to the right of the prison ruins," Pit whispered to the sullen centurion. "Just take it easy on her. Cherubot doesn't like a hard ride."

"I-I will, sir. Thank you, sir!" the centurion stuttered gratefully before flying out of the destroyed doorway. Satisfied with his work, Pit walked backed to the sofa, sat down, and started another round of Bash, er, Smash with the goddess of light.

As the countdown ran down for the beginning of the match, Pit asked, "Do you think we should be quieter when playing Brawl?" To which the goddess responded,

"Only if we want to avoid more exploding doors in the future."

* * *

Meanwhile, far above the atmosphere of Earth, in the vast expanse of stardust and stars known as the Galactic Sea, a shining blur sped across the celestial ocean's surface.

A closer inspection of the blur would reveal a ship unlike any make or model known to man, but those in the godly realm's merely referred to it as the space pirate ship, home to the nefarious space pirates.

…no, not those space pirates, because this game universe and that game universe have _nothing_ to do with each other.

So don't go around spreading rumors.

_Anyways_, as the ship cruised through the cosmos, a very short, very red, and very angry space pirate captain shouted orders to his crew on the deck of his ship through a comically large plastic megaphone.

His orders have been translated to the best of our ability.

"You, worm! The engine needs repairing, get to it!"

"Why are you just idling about, soldier? Our armory won't restock itself!"

"Attention, crew; one of the condensed constellations in the brig is about to go prompt-critical. I need an unwilling volunteer to check on and stabilize it using theoretical physics and a grenade launcher."

As the crew went about their daily tasks, one of the foot soldiers noticed a bright orange flare headed the ship's way. He immediately ran up to the bridge where the captain was shouting orders and whispered the information into the captain's auditory receptors.

After hearing the information, the captain pondered what to do next.

"I need a footstool. Someone get over here and be a footstool!"

The soldier standing next to him instantly got on his hands and knees, acting as a makeshift footstool. The captain climbed onto the pirates back, using the megaphone as a makeshift telescope.

True to the soldier's word, a bright flare sped toward the ship, blazing contrails streaking behind it. Closer inspection revealed it as a humanoid with flaming hair, glowing eyes, and a green pommel stone embedded into its chest. Oddly enough, however, the figure also seemed to be lacking hands and feet. What an odd…

"HELLO, space travelers! Pyrrhon gives you a hearty welcome!"

The captain removed the megaphone to see the figure floating in front of him, hands on his hips; that is, if he had hands. Tossing the megaphone aside, the pirate captain greeted the self-proclaimed god, hoping that he would be able to understand the pirate's native tongue.

"Hello, man of flame. We are the space pirates, scourges of the cosmos, and sowers of fear. If you do not have wealth or power, stand aside or you will be shot and killed."

"How DARE you insult my glutes?! I'll have you know that I exercised twice a day before I lost my hands!"

The captain sighed, realizing that this was one of the sub gods of Earth. He motioned for one of the commandos near him, whispering, "You know the language of sub gods, right?"

The commando responded, "Sure; I traveled to Skyworld while studying abroad. Could've gotten a decent job, too, if I hadn't decided to join the force-"

"Yeah, yeah, great," the captain interrupted, shoving the commando toward the flaming deity. "Now would you tell Mr. Big Ego over here what I just told him? Except in his inferior language."

A nasty glare was shot at the captain before the commando approached Pyrrhon and gave him the captain's message.

"Ah, so you're the space pirates that Palutena mentioned in passing," Pyrrhon commented, placing a nub under his chin. "You're far shorter than I thought you'd be, especially your captain."

"I resent that!" the captain yelled, shaking a fist atop his pirate footstool.

"Well, I enjoy a good crème brulee myself, but that's not important right now. If you're looking for treasure, I would recommend that you head the opposite direction," the flaming god said, with a hint of nervousness creeping into his voice, "because the only thing in your direction is an evil unlike…any…other..."

Pyrrhon's voice trailed off as a looming shadow blanketed the ship. He slowly turned around to see a massive grey object and a fleet of strange ships emerge in front of him.

"SWEET UNMERCIFUL MIMICUTIES!"

Before any of the pirates could blink an eye, Pyrrhon bolted off, leaving only an image of the god burned into the scleras of the crew on the bridge. Those present stood in stunned silence, before the captain yelled,

"What are you all doing? Man your battle stations!"

A frenzy of activity replaced the stillness as the crew of the pirate ship prepared to go to battle against the oncoming threat as a glowing figure retreated towards Earth.

* * *

"And the winner is…Pit!"

"Yes!" Palutena cheered, jumping off the couch and pumping her arms in victory.

"Oh, come on, the ONE time I choose not to play as myself!" Pit moaned, slouching in the sofa.

Palutena turned on him and grinned, asking "Well, what do you say? Best of twenty?"

Pit shoved himself off of the sofa and began to walk toward the practice grounds, replying, "Nah, I'm gonna go practice with my new weapon. You know, the Palutena Bow, the one-"

"-the one you got for beating the Three Trials on 9.0, I know. You've only told me about one hundred times, Pit." Palutena finished, getting off of the sofa herself and hitting the power button in the Wii. While Pit prepared to train, Palutena strode toward the broken entryway, telling Pit. "If you need me, I'll be consulting my All-Seeing Eye of Palutena."

"Didn't you have a slightly botched laser eye surgery in that eye?"

"Sure, but it was corrected by Theia, the goddess of sight."

"…are you messing with me again?"

"Maybe."

"Why do you use that thing anyway?" Pit commented, turning back to Palutena. "After all, it's been three years since we put down Hades."

Palutena paused, then turned to face Pit. "Pit, please do not continue on this train of thought."

"Really, the worst emergencies we've faces since then are a few monsters that slipped past the door to the Underworld," Pit continued, ignoring the goddess' advice. "I mean, really, what could possibly hap-"

"Palutena! I come…bearing a warning…of grave danger!"

The goddess of light whirled to face the doorway and saw Pyhrron leaning against the frame, panting heavily.

"Lady Palutena! I'll protect you!" Pit cried, sprinting in front of Palutena and spitting his bow into two blades. He dropped into a defensive stance and gave his battle cry.

"Listen here you black-hearted traitor! I am the servant of the goddess Palutena, defender of all that is just and right! I will protect both the domain of Skyworld and the goddess of light from backstabbers like you. So prepare! To! Fight!"

Pyrrhon stared at Pit with a cocked eyebrow before asking Palutena, "Is he always this melodramatic?"

"Says the king of Shazamatylam himself," retorted Palutena. "And what happened to your hands and feet, anyway?"

"See, that ties into the big, huge, massive problem headed our way," the sun deity commented, shuffling nervously on his leg stumps. "Do you remember six years ago, when I took control of the Aurum Brain-"

"-and you tried to kill me with it?" Pit interrupted sourly.

"To be fair, being a Level Infinity Epic Super God Plus does have its perks," Pyhhron said defensively, "but that's not the issue here. See, after pushing the Aurum Brain away from Earth for about four years, I managed to break free from the core and escape. Lost my hands and feet in the process, though," Pyrrhon reminisced, ruefully staring at the stumps where his hands used to be.

Palutena rubbed her chin as she pondered Pyrrhon's predicament. "So because you were chained to the core, you had to actively break your hands and feet from your body to escape. I hate to say it, Pyhhron, but I'm impressed."

"Yes, well, all in a days work for the god of the sun," the deity boasted, a smug grin plastered on face.

"But could you please get on with the story; it sounded like something serious," the goddess asked hastily.

"Wha- oh right. So, like I said, I managed to escape from the Brain without much trouble, for the glory of Pyrrhon cannot be contained by a hive mind! Unfortunately, I _may_ have accidentally forgotten to obliterate the brain before leaving. By the time I realized that I'd forgotten, the Brain had reactivated itself and was, well, maybe, possibly, perhaps…headedbackthewayitcame."

A look of horror spread across the faces of both the Skworld denizens as they realized what Pyrrhon meant; however, just to confirm their suspicions, Palutena shakily asked, "So, you mean that…?"

"The Aurum are returning to Earth. And they're coming back with a deadly vengeance."

Both goddess and angel stared at the sun god in minor disbelief before Palutena turned to Pit and flatly stated, "See, Pit? This is why we never ask what could possibly happen."

* * *

Seeing as the return of the Aurum was a matter of the safety of all the domains of Earth, Palutena called an impromptu meeting for the Forces of Nature, the Underworld Army, and the Soldiers of Skyworld.

Unfortunately, the world's factions never worked well together, especially in a cramped board room.

"Arlon, would you please get your mustache out of my eye before I punch you in you in your waistcoat?"

"Hoo hoo hoo, it'th tho much fun getting together like thith; you know, guarding an impenetrable fortreth can get awfully lonely."

"I don't see why I have to be here; Dark Pit is a servant to himself, not to any god or man."

"…"

"You know, Cragalanche, Pyrrhon believes that you'd be a better conversation partner if you spoke up once in a while."

"QUIET DOWN, EVERYBODY!"

All eyes were immediately fixed on the goddess of light as she prepared to break down the situation.

"First off, I'd like to thank everybody for-"

"Excuse me, ma'am. I don't mean to be rude, but some of us have to get our beauty sleep. So maybe we could skip the introductions and get to the point of the cmeeting?"

Palutena shot a death glare at Phosphora before continuing on. "As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted, we are facing a massive threat on our planet; one that we're all familiar with. How massive is this threat, you may ask?" She tapped the table, and all those present at the table gasped in shock at what appeared on its surface.

"This massive."

Thousands, nay, hundreds of thousands of ships were scattered about the image; some were pointed, others were flat, and all lacked a hull. Dotted around the ships were speck recognizable only as Aurum troops, whose mere presence filled a quarter of the shot. However, the most terrifying piece of the photo was a massive object looming in the background. It was a sphere with a jagged surface and several spires jutting from its center: the Aurum Brain.

"This picture was taken mere minutes ago by centurions stationed at the abandoned Lightning Tower," Palutena stated. "As you can see, the Aurum are returning to Earth, and in greater numbers than before. If we wish to combat this threat, we must band together once more to defeat the Aurum once and for all."

"Bu-but there are so many!" Pandora stuttered, leaning over the table to get a better view of the photo and giving everyone present a lovely view of her tracts of land. "There must be at least thousands upon thousands of ships! There aren't enough troops in the Underworld to combat them all!"

Viridi nodded in agreement, saying, "It's the same situation with the Forces of Nature. We're short on soldiers and they don't exactly grow on trees. Actually, they do; matter of fact, we have a farm where they mature and ripen…but that's beside the point. What I mean is, they won't be prepared in time to combat the Aurum."

Palutena frowned in disappointment, ruefully sighing, "Unfortunately, our centurions haven't exactly toughened up since the last war, even if we did open up a boot camp. We even offered free t-shirts, but the plan was a bust. I only wish we had even a dozen competent fighters among us."

"Would you be willing to settle for eight?"

All eyes turned to Dark Pit as he grinned, continuing, "I know eight fighters who are as competent with weaponry as Pit and myself, as unflappable in battle as Cragalanche, and tough as an Orne. And they're currently competing in Skyworld's second most popular sport."

Pit thought for a moment, then gasped as he realized who Dark Pit was talking about. "But Pittoo, all they've ever done is fight in arenas. Do you think they'd be ready for a real battle?"

"Trust me, _Pitstain_, if we've got to rely on anyone to help defeat the Aurum, the multiplayer fighters are our best bet."

* * *

**Thus endeth this not-so-normal day in Skyworld. With a much larger threat and much smaller armies to combat it, the factions of Earth must now rely on Skyworld's fiercest combatants to help defeat the Aurum once again.**

**Just as a note, the fighters I'm going to be using are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, pink, and brown. I know that there are two other fighters plus Light vs. Dark, But I want to stick with these eight for now.**

**Yes, Pandora is in human form.**

**Not much else to say in the end-story author's notes. Just glad to get this idea out of my head and onto paper. Virtual paper.**

**Hope you enjoyed it, thanks for reading, and stick around for Chapter 2 of Kid Icarus: Daybreak**


	2. Prologue: Time Off

**Hey guys, Temporal Break, bringing you another chapter! Huzzah!**

**In this chapter, I'm introducing seven of the eight fighters from multiplayer! Their names and clothing may be color coded for your convenience, but they're anything but palate swaps of Pit. Don't worry, I'll introduce the eighth one in the next chapter, so sit tight! **

**Come to think of it, what does sit tight mean? Would you have to be strapped to your chair, thus making it tight, or do you just clench your butt really hard?**

...

**Ah, whatever. Sit back and enjoy the second prologue of _Kid Icarus: Daybreak!_**

* * *

Prologue: Time Off

A few miles south of the meeting hall, a normally desolate group of islands was crowded with market stalls, races of all shapes and sizes, and enough food and drink to satiate a Guttler. Gold and silver adorned the temple pillars, and festivity and joy permeated the air. It had been three years since the Underworld invasion, and Skworld's denizens were more than happy to celebrate.

Among the hustle and bustle of the festivities were three figures of similar heights: one was a male with curly ginger hair, amber irises, and dressed in crimson armor. Another was a female with shoulder length blonde hair and garbed in a dark orange tunic. The final member was also male, but with short black and greying hair, dark brown eyes, and dressed in a carnation toga that reached his feet.

At the moment, the man in pink and the girl were bickering over a fight, while the one in red stood back and watched the debate.

"C'mon, Perseus, you totally cheated!" the blonde haired girl snapped at the man in pink.

Perseus took a dramatic step back, feigning shock and nearly bumping into a cabbage cart, whose owning fretted about an old business trip in a city called Omashu. "How dare you accuse me of cheating, Olivia? You know that I uphold the rules of Free for All with the utmost conviction and fervor."

"Yeah, that and a six star Magnus Club buffed with Aries Armor and a Libra Sponge! You know those are banned!" Olivia replied, becoming visibly riled and attracting the attention of a few market goers.

"…well, I just wanted to ensure my victory, you see. Besides, I've been fighting in the arena since its conception, while you adopted the orange armor not three months ago. I believe that seniority allows me a few extra privileges," Perseus dramatically declared as the three entered the island square.

"Right, because you and your pink bedsheet clearly signify experience and expertise. At least Roy has the sense to dress in something I wouldn't use as a table spread." Olivia retorted, pointing at the third member's armor.

"For your information, this is a _toga_," the man stated, casually brushing out any wrinkles that may have formed from the stress of the situation. "I wear it because it is comfortable and fitting for this location."

"Mm hmm, and I'm sure it feels wonderful when an icy wind grazes your-"

As the two argued, neither one realized that they were gathering attention from the various citizens that populated the marketplace. Soon, a small crowd began to gather around the group as they watched the two argue. Realizing this, Roy quickly stepped into the verbal fray.

"Alright, break it up, you two," the armored member of the trio said, striding in between the two. "Remember, we're here to have fun, not argue over some silly FfA match. It's not every day the servers are down, and it's even rarer that they're down on a holiday. Let's try to enjoy ourselves."

Olivia gave Perseus a Medusa-like glare, while Perseus stared back with narrowed eyes and pursed lips. Eventually, though, the two realized that their mediator had a point and forfeited their impromptu staring contest.

"Sorry, Roy, I guess you're right." Olivia mumbled, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment.

"Y-Yes, why waste time on such a trivial matter when we can enjoy the festivities of the day?" Perseus agreed, trying to regain some dignity after being shut down.

Roy nodded in approval, then turned to the crowd and yelled, "D'you hear that, everybody? Go on! Enjoy yourselves! Today is a day of celebration! Eat, drink, and be merry, for we have subdued the Underworld!"

Immediately, the crowd cheered in approval, completely forgetting about the argument that happened moments prior, and in a few moments, everyone was back to roaming throughout the market. Satisfied with his work, Roy turned back to the other two; Olivia gave him a small clap of approval, while Perseus merely looked at him with a half-smile.

"You're quite the crowd pleaser, aren't you?" Perseus said.

"Eh, it's a gift," Roy replied, shrugging his shoulders. "Now, let's get down to business. Does everyone have some hearts?"

"I've got twenty thousand," Olivia said, pulling a small woven bag out of a pouch on her belt.

"Fifty Gs here," Perseus responded, not bothering to show his fortune.

"And I've got thirty grand. Alright, feel free to roam around the square, look at whatever catches your eye, buy stuff, and enjoy yourselves. We'll meet back here in three hours. Remember, you're not just limited to this island, either. Other fighters have already gone to other islands with the jump pads scattered around. Got it?"

"Got it!" the two replied, and with that, each of them went their separate ways; none of them noticed a small centurion running and panting into the square with a sealed envelope.

"Message for a Mr. Roy! Mr. Roy! Hello? Lady Palutena told me you'd be here!" The centurion looked around the crowded square, searching for any sign of a non-centurion being. His search ultimately served fruitless.

"That's just great." He muttered, walking through the marketplace and to the south. "First I get in trouble for trying to save Palutena, then I have to rebuild her doorway, and now I'm on reconnaissance for a bunch of online avatars! Of all the, miserable, unfair…"

He continued to grumble as he searched for the fighters.

* * *

"Oh, wow! Look at this Fortune Bow! And that Ogre Club has six melee stars! Holy cow, is that a Kitchen Blade? I thought those were discontinued during the rise of Medusa!"

Olivia watched as an olive skinned girl in blue overalls and a light blue t-shirt rushed from shelf to display case to weapon stand and back again, her shoulder length black hair trailing behind her. They both stood inside _Honest Eddie's Totally Legitimate Artillery Store_, a fairly large weapons stall on the south end of the main festival island. The store owner, an erinus dressed in blue robes and a blue turban, watched as the girl rushed from one end of the store to the other with enough energy to make him tired just from watching her. As much as he enjoyed business (Skyworld didn't need much weaponry after the war), the girl wasn't really _buying_ anything. Eventually, he got fed up and yelled,

"HEY! YOU! GIRL IN BLUE! YOU BUY OR I KICK YOU OUT!"

The girl immediately rushed up to the counter and enthusiastically babbled, "So whaddya recommend, huh? Something with range, maybe? Ooh, but maybe a freezing mod would be cool, too! Going fast is really fun, actually, so I want speed! What about a hearts bonus, huh, got anything with-"

"Berry, slow down! You're gonna stress him out talking that fast," Olivia interrupted, walking over to the counter next to the girl. This small reprieve allowed the erinus to straighten his robes and his turban before addressing the two.

"Hello, and welcome to Honest Eddie's Totally Legitimate Artillery Story, where we serve all of your high powered needs. My name is Honest Eddie, retailer and proprietor of store. Perhaps I interest you in fine Royal Blade? Only ten thousand hearts." he said, pulling a gilded blade off of the rack behind him. But before he could turn around…

"HAH! Are you trying to swindle me? That blade's worth about as much as a Mimicutie's fortune. It's got no effect mods, no continuous OR charged mods, and only one star in ranged and melee! Do you want me to buy something or not?" Berry folded her arms across her chest, her once enthusiastic expression turned deadly serious.

If there was one thing that Berry took seriously, it was weaponry. Despite her excessively cheery demeanor and limitless energy, she was a master weapons crafter and designer. It was said that she could tell the difference between a good piece of artillery and a useless one while blindfolded and underwater using only her ears.

Admittedly, only Berry herself had ever said that, but there was no denying she was a master in her field.

The erinus was put off for a moment, momentarily losing his composure. In a moment, though, he regained his cheery grin and attempted to clean up his act.

"I see, I see. Much too gaudy, much too useless. Especially for woman like you." The erinus stood up from behind his counter and walked over to the clubs display. With a small grunt, he heaved out the Ogre Club that Berry had glanced at earlier. Berry merely shook her head in disapproval, which Olivia realized could only mean one thing.

Another fraud.

After a few seconds of huffing and puffing, he carefully leaned the club against his counter before returning to his position and beginning another pitch. "I saw you looking at Ogre Club few minutes ago. Very good choice. 150 value, six star melee, and-"

"And all of the mods are negative. Seriously, I'd only theorized about a bad luck mod until today," She said bitterly, growing visibly irritated. "If you don't show me something good in the next five seconds, I'm leaving and taking my money with me."

At this point, the erinus was becoming increasingly nervous. Most of his customers were soft centurions who wouldn't know the difference between a Halo Club and Beam Claws. Yet here was a customer with enough weaponry know-how to put Dyntos to shame. She probably had a lot of money, too.

As he continued to fret, Olivia's eyes began to roam around the shop. There were all makes and models of Palutena's arsenal, though if she had to guess, most of them were flukes. That didn't take away from the impressive scale of the armory, which included arms, orbitars, blades, and…

…a golf club?

Indeed, there appeared to be a golf club leaning against a staff display. On closer inspection, it appeared to be a steel driver that was chipped and scraped along the body, and it's leather handle was beginning to peel. Curious, she walked over to the corner and grabbed it by the handle, then brought it back for Berry to inspect.

"Hey, Berry, what do you think of this?" Olivia asked, tapping her on the shoulder. Berry turned away from the fretting Underworlder for a moment to look at the driver. When she saw what Olivia was holding, a glimmer of excitement spread across the mechanic's face.

When the shop keeper saw what Olivia was holding, he tried to snort, began choking because he didn't have a nose, and then spoke in an incredulous tone, "You want filthy thing? That is old driver, not fit for golf, much less fighting in big battle. If you want so badly, I give to you for one thousand-"

"DONE!"

Before he could blink, the girl in the overalls had swiped the club and thrown a small sack of hearts on the table. Olivia watched as Berry rushed out of the door, then turned to the owner and shrugged before following her. The erinus stared blankly for a moment before shaking his head as he counted the money.

"Hmph, little Mik. I bet she shorthanded old Eddie. I hope that…she…oh, Hades."

Eddie stared at his fortune before collapsing into two separate heaps: one for his torso and one for his legs. Not long after, the same centurion from the square walked into the shop.

"Mr. Perseus? Miss Olivia! I have a message from Palutena," he shouted before noticing the collapsed Erinus on the floor.

"Hmph, Underworlders. Lazy, stupid creatures. He won't make any hearts lying on the floor like that."

Meanwhile, three blocks south of the shop, Olivia leaned against a pillar, panting and gasping, while Berry stood and admired her prize.

"I don't *wheeze* get it. *hah* What's so special *huff* about an old golf club anyway?"

Berry paused her investigation to reply to Olivia. "This isn't just an old golf club", she said excitedly, "but a long rumored thirteenth staff: the driver staff! Its lightweight material boosts the user's speed, its charged shots are strongest at close range, and its continuous fire bounces on the ground instead of traveling in a straight line. But what's really cool is that it shoots-"

*BOOM!* *CRACK!*

Both fighters stared down the street as a two-foot wide golf ball sat smoldering in the wreckage of a cabbage cart, whose owner sat sobbing next to the debris. Olivia looked at the staff and saw that Berry's index finder sat on a hidden trigger installed into the head of the driver. The two stared at each other for a brief moment.

"Should we run?" Olivia asked.

"Probably," Berry replied.

And with that, the duo took off down the street, leaving dust like impressions of themselves behind.

"I can't imagine that the others are having half as much fun as us!" Berry yelled as they tore a path through the festivities.

* * *

A massive arena stood on a floating island nearly half a mile away from the main festivities. Thousands of centurions and assorted troops of the Forces of Nature cheered and hollered on stands surrounding the main event: a model temple in the likeness of Palutena's, with several elevated stone platforms surrounding the structure.

Within this arena, two combatants were having the time of their lives.

"Hah, you think that you can beat me, whippersnapper?" Perseus shouted mockingly, having donned a suit of pink fighter armor in place of his toga. He swung an Ore Club at his opponent, another fighter with yellow armor and Bear Claws, who ducked behind a pillar to avoid the torrential winds.

"Hah HAH! If I don't get you, arthritis will, old man!" the fighter shouted back before leaping out of his hiding place and lunching a continuous barrage of claws in his direction. Persues dodged the brunt of the blow, but a few stray claws struck his shin, forcing him backward. Seizing his chance, the yellow fighter sprinted toward Perseus…

…only to get launched backwards by a club combo.

"It'll take more than that to take me down, Yiorgos!" Perseus boasted as the yellow fighter went soaring towards the stands. It didn't take long for his body to slam into the force field that separated the raucous fans from the action, and soon he was falling back to Earth. Skyworld. Whatever.

Before he hit the ground, though, Yiorgos' body suddenly vanished in a small burst of light. Perseus became very cautious as the crowd fell silent.

*WHACKTHWACKTWHACKWHACKPOW!*

Suddenly, the launcher became the launched as an invisible Yiorgos delivered a melee claw combo on Perseus' exposed backside. The crowd was insatiable, cheering and roaring for more as Perseus fell. He landed on his hands and flipped himself upright, taking advantage of his invincibility frames by firing another tornado at his opponent.

Yiorgos dodged the gale and took the time to smirk at Perseus, only to get bowled over by a Super Speed-ing suit of purple armor. Perseus took advantage of his confusion by slamming the club into his opponent's skull, weakening Yiorgos before he could recover.

Perseus wound up for another strike, but Yiorgos dodged the club as it slammed into the ground, following up his dodge with a quick melee combo. This time, however, Perseus was prepared; before the yellow fighter could finish his onslaught, his opponent was shimmering in a multi colored light.

Yiorgos backed off as Perseus' Brief Invincibility wore off. The moment his body stopped shining, he dashed at Yiorgos, who was just standing in the middle of the field. Almost as if…

Before he could stop himself, his club was already coming down on Yiorgos. He flashed a brief smile before disappearing in a poof of smoke. Perseus instinctively dashed forward to avoid Yiorgos' expected melee combo.

Unfortunately, the yellow fighter instead chose to dash backwards, firing off a cluster of bear claws. The cluster smashed into Perseus' back, sending him stumbling and tripping forward.

He quickly activated a second Brief Invincibility and ran behind a nearby pillar in order to get a small reprieve. The invincibility did nothing to ease the pain he was feeling; Yiorgos was getting the upper hand. He knew that the raw power of a club did nothing when compared to the speed of claws.

"You spend too much time thinking, Grandpa."

In a burst of adrenaline, the older fighter dashed around the younger one as Yiorgos found himself swiping at nothing but air. One millisecond later, he found himself spinning head over heels into the entrance of the temple.

That gave Perseus an idea.

He dashed up to the entrance of the temple and activated a Quick Charge, smirking to no one in particular. The moment Yiorgos raced to the entrance, Perseus launched a tornado, forcing him back into the building. When Yiorgos tried against, he launched yet another tornado.

"I can keep this up all day, boy!" he shouted, ignoring the boos and hisses that came from the now agitated and unamused crowd. "I've got three more charges where that came from! Don't think that I won't resort to cheap tricks!"

He continued to laugh as tornado after tornado came tumbling into the entrance. However, he failed to notice that the tornados were failing to hit anybody. Failed to notice, that is, until he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He slowly turned and gasped in horror at the sight.

Standing in front of him was Yoirgos, shimmering and sparkling in the unholy glow of Trade-Off.

"Don't think I won't either, Perseus."

Yiorgos rushed at Perseus's stunned form and ravaged him with a flurry of slashes and lacerations. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't lay a scrape on Yiorgos. The curb stomping finally ended when Yiorgos leapt backwards before charging forwards, using his momentum to drive the claws into Perseus' armor and body before tearing both apart .

With that, Perseus' form exploded into a pillar of light.

Yiorgos had won.

The crowd erupted into a roaring tempest of cheers, applause, and cat-calls, while the yellow fighter took off his helmet to truly drink in the adoration of the crowd. His green eyes scanned the frenzy of the crowds as his long black hair flowed majestically in the breeze. His helmet was held at his side as he waved an armored hand to the crowd, which only served to rile them up even more. He looked every bit the hero of the fight.

A now respawned Perseus walked up next to him and also began to clap, quietly whispering, "So how did you get out of that temple, anyway?"

Yiorgos stopped waving and turned toward Perseus. "Well, while you were acting all high and mighty, I hid behind a wall and activated a few Health Recoveries to restore my strength. Eventually, you fell into a pattern, so I used a Transparency to get out undetected. All I needed to do then was buff myself and tear you apart. By the way, you owe me five hundred hearts."

Perseus grumbled as he tossed five Golden Hearts at the victor, who caught them in an open palm.

"You know, today has really been exciting," Perseus remarked, a small frown of resentment forming on his face. "It's going to be quite a letdown once we get back on the servers."

"I don't know," Yiorgos replied, putting a hand on his chin in contemplation. "I think it's just as fun fighting on one arena as the next, though I will admit that the attention is nice." He turned to Perseus and grinned, saying, "So whaddaya think, old man? You up for one more round?"

Perseus grinned back, brandishing his Ore Club in a battle ready stance.

"You know it, whippersnapper!"

And with that, the crowd cheered once more as another round began.

* * *

"I swear, would those bloodthirsty freaks keep it down? I'd probably be able to hear those morons from the Starlight Observatory!"

A young woman sat at an ornately carved table piled high with several thick leather bound book. The woman herself looked around twenty-five, with long brown hair tied back into a ponytail. Her eyes, too, were chocolate brown. She was wearing a short tan toga that reached to her knees, secured around the waist by a black sash.

At the moment, she was reading a book on human war tactics and strategy in The Omniscient House of Records, Skyworld's ever increasing database on the comings and goings of the realms. However, due to the recent rise of Divinipedia and, as the woman said, a rather ill-conceived notion of placing a library next to a sports arena, the house had been admitting fewer and fewer visitors through its doors.

"It's like Skyworld's architects had one too many Drinks of the Gods when they designed this city," she groaned. Despite her best efforts, the cries of the fans on the other island constantly distracted her from her reading. Eventually, she gave up and slammed the book shut, placing it on the pile next to her. She began rubbing her temples to calm herself before another voice said,

"Hey, take it easy, Tyra. Days off are far and few between in our line of work. You can take those books anywhere, but Perseus and Yiorgos are pretty much limited to the arena."

Tyra glared at the source of the voice sitting, or rather, leaning next to her: a light-skinned young adult who would have looked about nineteen in human years, with shoulder length blonde hair that fell limply by his neck. He wore a black and purple striped t-shirt, dark purple jeans, and black tennis shoes. Despite the other fighters' complaints about the impracticality and ridiculousness of his outfit, he ostensibly claimed that his attire was comfortable and would catch on in a few years.

"_Sure, a few millennia, maybe,"_ she thought as she addressed his claim. "Well, it many interest you to know, Verne, that one cannot simply walk out of the Omniscient House of Records with an official record of a realm's history. In order to acquire such a document, one would first need to address the Court of Deities to get a permit for ownership. However, to that, one would need to write a case for ownership, which has to-hey, give that back!"

Verne had gotten up from his seat, snatched the book on war tactics, and casually strolled over to the nearest centurion staffer.

"Excuse me," he said in a quiet, calm voice, "but would you mind if my friend here borrowed your book for a few weeks? She's quite interested in the art of war, and this is the only institution with a copy of these recordings."

Tyra was about to apologize to the librarian for his audacious request, when the centurion happily replied, "Oh, that old book? Tell your friend that she can keep it; so many citizens up here consider themselves holier-than-thou compared to humans. They don't really bother to study human history. Might as well let someone get some use out of it."

The centurion quickly produced a rubber stamp and stamped "APPROVED FOR REMOVAL" on its inside cover. As he walked (well, floated) away, Verne walked back to the table with a triumphant half-smile on his face. Tyra only gave him an unamused glare.

"You know that your laid back attitude will only get you so far in life, right?" Tyra stated flatly as Verne sat down next to her.

"Hey, you're the one complaining about noise," he said nonchalantly, resting his feet on the table. "I just figured the best way to make you happy was to get the book. Besides, I know how much you want to impress Palutena, and I'm sure this book'll help. "

It was no secret to the team that Tyra wanted to join Palutena's army. She had been happy to fight in arenas when she joined five years ago (though it was somewhat terrifying fighting under a mind-controlled goddess). A couple of years ago, though, when Pit proved victorious against Hades, Tyra had been inspired by his heroic deeds and now wished to join Skyworld's ranks.

"Thank you for that wonderful piece of exposition, narrator," Tyra huffed sarcastically, "but I'm not going to be joining any army if I keep getting interrupted."

"Tyra, you've been trying to join Palutena's army for nearly three years now," Verne remarked, beginning to slouch in the ancient chair. "At this point, I'd say that a Pluton has a bigger chance of donating to charity than you fighting with her forces."

"Or you actually trying to win a match for once," Tyra retorted.

The easygoing fighter just shrugged and replied, "Hey, I win some, I lose some. If I lose more than I win, big whoop. At least I had fun doing it."

"You know, if you took your job seriously, you might have had some hearts to spend today," said a familiar voice.

Tyra turned in her seats to see Roy standing behind them, with arms folded and a serious expression on his face. "I see that you two are keeping busy; well, at least one of you is."

"Ah, if it isn't Mr. Mediator himself. So, how are things going with you on this fine day of the gods?" Verne asked, not bothering to address Roy eye to eye. Rather than get angry, however, Roy pulled up a chair next to the pair and spoke to them.

"Well, Olivia and Berry accidentally fired off a staff in a crowded street. I had to appease a crowd and stop an angry cabbage cart owner from ripping them a new one. Perseus and Yiorgos are in the stadium right now. Not that they were aware, but some strongarms were having a brawl because of a ridiculous bet. Nearly lost an arm trying to stop them, but luckily no one got hurt. Guy is still waiting in the multiplayer lobby. I went back to-"

Tyra slapped a hand over his mouth, chuckling, "Roy, he wasn't asking how the others were doing. He was asking how you were doing!"

Roy slowly removed Tyra's hand from his mouth and looked at her incredulously. "What do you mean me? I just told you. I stopped a mob, stopped a brawl, and tried to convince Guy to come to the festival with us, but you know how she is around crowds."

"Sounds like you've been having the time of your life." Verne said, slowly closing his eyes. Despite his even tone, everyone present could sense the bite of sarcasm in his little quip.

"As much as I hate to say it, Verne has a point," Tyra said. Roy didn't bother answering, instead choosing to avoid eye contact with her. "You're a sweet guy, but you care too much. You make our problems your problems and leave little to no time for yourself. You need to relax. We're professional combatants, and we know how to handle ourselves."

For a long time, nobody spoke.

Then Roy quietly said, "I know that you guys can handle yourselves. Heck, half of you have battled it out longer than I have, and I still have things I need to learn. But…"

Here he paused, taking a deep breath before continuing, "I don't want you guys to be miserable or get in trouble today. We've fought nearly the entire time we've lived in Skyworld, and we all know how exhausting it can be. So I want everyone else to have a good time here, even if I have to clean up everyone else's messes to do so."

"Roy," Tyra said seriously, choosing to take a more logical approach. "We're at a festival in the most protected realm of the three. This festival celebrates the fall of the Underworld, who we've neither seen hide nor hair of for three yeats, save for a few shopkeepers. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Aaaaaand you jinxed it," Verne mumbled.

The front doors of the library burst open as a sweating and panting centurion came rushing in. Roy raced to the exhausted messenger, catching him before he collapsed.

"Mr. *wheeze* Roy!" the centurion gasped as Verna and Tyra walked up behind them. "I *hack* have a message *hooh* from Lady Palutena!" He held up a sealed envelope, which Roy quickly took and tore open.

"What is it?" Tyra asked as Roy read the message inside. Suddenly, he sprinted to the entrance of the library, only stopping to yell, "Get the others and tell them to meet me at Palutena's Temple in five minutes!"

The three stared at the doors for a moment before realizing that in his hurry, their mediator had dropped the envelope and letter. Tyra stooped down and snatched the note, holding it up for the others to get a look at its contents. Four words were spun across the parchment in god-like cursive.

"The Aurum are returning."

* * *

**Yes, we already knew that the Aurum were out for revenge, but _they _didn't know that. Yay for dramatic irony! And boy howdy do I enjoy the number three.**

**Just a few things to clear up. No, the Kitchen Blade and Driver Staff don't exist, though a sports weapon in the game would have been really cool. (Have you ever been hit by a golf ball? Those things hurt like the dickens.)**

**In addition, I had to cheat a little bit in the powers department to get things to work. Specifically, one of the powers setups in the duel couldn't work in a standard power board. Can you guess which?**

**Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in Chapter 3!**


	3. Prologue: Surprised Encounters

**Hello, peoples of the Internet! Temporal Break here, bringing you another installment of _Kid Icarus: Daybreak!_**

**Okay, so we're getting down to the last of the Prologues, in which the which the fighters are introduced to Pit, Dark Pit, and pretty much everyone else. I know I could do that Total Drama style (bring on the Dock of Shame, folks!), but I just felt like it would be good to see the avatars interacting with Uprising's characters. Don't worry though, the next chapter will bring on the Aurum and introduce our characters to their first boss.**

**Until then, though, enjoy the final Prologue of _Kid Icarus: Daybreak!_**

* * *

Prologue: Surprised Encounters

Once the message had been sent, everyone agreed to take some time away from the cramped boardroom and get some fresh air. The majority of the Forces of Nature decided to relax in Skyworld's expansive garden, though a shimmering blue spark could be seen flitting about the sky from time to time.

Pyrrhon, being the super stud that he was, decided to scout the heavens above Skyworld for any sign of the Aurum threat. If the others were honest, it was a welcome break from his constant yammering about hindering the autonomous threat three years prior.

The Underworld's commanders set up camp in the dungeon ruins. After three years of negligence, this stone fortress was damp, grimy and filthy. It was a place no self-respecting Skyworlder would set foot in, and so the commanders found the dungeon complex a wonderful home away from home.

Palutena, her angel, and her angel's reflection were gathered at the temple, where tensions regarding the second invasion were running high.

The goddess herself paced about the courtyard of her temple, agonizing over the arrival of Pit's online counterparts. Pit followed behind Palutena, trying to offer helpful and comforting words in an attempt to calm her down. Dark Pit, on the other hand, sat on the steps to the courtyard, grinning and watching the show. It wasn't often that the ever-holy Goddess of Light got her panties in a wad, so whenever it did happen, Dark Pit tried to enjoy every moment of it.

"I don't know, Pit. It's just…can we trust these guys?" Palutena asked worriedly, biting her nails. "This is the largest threat we've faced since the Underworld Invasion."

"Yeah, that and your cooking. Seriously, who screws a salad up so badly she fabricates a hundred foot monster from _vegetables_?" Dark Pit snickered.

Palutena pursed her lips glared at Dark Pit. "Y'know, why are you this cheery now, when we're about to start a second _war_?" she said angrily.

The dark angel gave an uncharacteristic chuckle at what should have been a serious threat. "I can't help it if it's fun watching the all mighty Palutena with a pole up her-"

"D-Don't worry, Lady Palutena." Pit interrupted, diverting the goddess' wrath away for Dark Pit. "These guys are the best. Most of them have been fighting their whole lives, and all of them know how to operate all 108 weapon types in our armory, plus one that's so dangerous only the avatars know how to operate it. You can't go wrong with the fighters."

"Sure, sure, they're fantastic," Dark Pit said snarkily, leaning back against the cracked steps. "Yep, they're fantastic, if you can get past their, uh, _excessive_ quirks."

Confused, Palutena began to ask, "What do you mean, quirks?"

"SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

As if on cue, the loudest, longest, most ear-wrenching fangirl squeal erupted throughout Skyworld. Pit, Dark Pit, and Palutena all squeezed their hands as close to their ears as possible to avoid ear damage. Several windows broke through the airborne domain and one could almost feel the underlying stone tremble. Unfortunately, as soon as the cry ceased, a pair of overalls with a shirt to match whizzed into the courtyard and tackled Pit.

"Whoa whoa WHAT?" Pit yelped in a panic, slamming into the bricks on which he once stood. His vision was clouded by dust from the impact, blurring his visibility. Unfortunately, it did nothing to damage his vocal cords.

"A-All right, you Aurum fiend!" Pit shouted as his resolve grew and the dust began to clear. "I may not have a weapon, but I won't let you hurt Lady Palutena, Dark Pit. Viridi, or anyone else here! Comrade of darkness, prepare to-"

"Ohmygoash, it's true! You do have the most amazing speeches! I mean I knew they were amazing before but now I truly see your oh I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Berry and it's so nice to meet you! I mean I met you before but then you were trying to kill me. Oh, I mean not intentionally it's just part of the sport after all…"

When the air was finally breathable, Pit saw that he had been tackled not by an Aurum troop, but an energetic female with black hair, brown eyes, and enough words to fill the Lexicon De Deorum.

"Umm…what do I do now?" Pit asked Dark Pit hesitantly as the girl continued babbling. Dark Pit just stood in front of him, laughing at his misfortune. Pit then turned to Palutena for help, but found that she was trying and failing to suppress her own laughter.

"Great, apparently today is the second Everyone-Pick-On-Pit-Day," the angel muttered to himself. Berry, despite her good intentions, would not shut up, and the constant talking was beginning to give him a migraine. As much as he tried, Pit couldn't get a word in edgewise through her wall of incessant noise. Eventually, he resigned himself to fate and leaned back, trying to block out the noise, when a second, male voice spoke up.

"Eugh, are you kidding me? Berry, we've talked about this; if you're going to fangirl, do it on the Aethernet." Another fighter, this one dressed in purple armor, walked over to the two and pried Berry away from Pit. He immediately leapt up and straightened his clothes, sandals, and laurel wreath. Berry and the other fighter took a few steps back, allowing Pit to compose himself and address the two.

"Uh…hi!" Pit said cheerily, trying to forget his assault seconds prior. "I'm the captain of Palutena's guard, Pit, and these two are-"

"We know who they are, silly!" Berry interrupted with a bright, disarming smile on her face. "We may not have lived in Skyworld as long as you, but we know the heroes who killed Hades and the goddess who guided them."

Suddenly, a bright flash of blue light erupted behind them as Phosphora landed in the courtyard. Viridi and Arlon followed close behind.

"Miss Palutena, I think I heard a banshee or something screaming! Is everything alright?" the electric commander asked.

Palutena turned to her and replied, "Don't worry, Phosphora. Everything's fine, just some excessive fangirling on Berry's part."

"Berry? Who's- oh." Phosphora stared at the mechanic with disappointment while Berry stared back with barely contained excitement radiating off of her body.

"So you're the heroes that're going to save the Earth," Phosphora said, crossing her arms. "I don't want to sound rude, but actually I do. You're hardly punching bag material, much less hero material."

"Perhaps I might be able to change your opinion?" a deep masculine voice spoke behind her. She turned to face its source and was momentarily lost for words. Yiorgos stood behind her as his raven hair flowed in the wind, his square jaw was set, and his brown eyes seemed to sparkle as he stared into her own purple ones.

"I, uh, buh…"

"And the flirter becomes the flirtee," Palutena whispered to Pit, who couldn't help but chuckle at the scene. It was well known within the realms how much of a flirt Phosphora was, having broken many a human heart with her antics. Seeing the tables turned was a welcome sight for everyone involved.

Yiorgos walked up to the stammering fireball and placed a finger on her lip. "Shh," he soothingly whispered. "Why waste words when your eyes say everything?"

He slowly began to walk around Phosphora and lightly caressed her shoulders, causing her to shudder slightly. "Yes, your eyes, your voice, they dance and spiral like cherry blossoms in the spring."

He wrapped his arms around her neck and gently whispered, "I see your beauty, your kindness, your independence. A beautiful rose with thorns as deadly as any Reaper."

By this point, Phosphora's cheeks were bright red. She tried saying something, anything, but no words could be spoken. Yiorgos let her go and she stumbled, momentarily losing her footing. He stood in front of her and held out his hands.

"Why let clothing and money tarnish such a perfect woman?"

Phosphora quickly turned from lovestruck to thunderstruck as she saw both her scarf and her wallet sitting in the palms of his hands. Her own hands quickly went to her neck, not fully believing what she was seeing. The only thing she ending up grabbing was her Adam's apple.

"Why…you…GIVE ME THOSE!" She stomped up to the warrior thief and snatched both items out of his palms. Everyone but Phosphora, Yiorgos, and Arlon were laughing around them, and even Yiorgos was smiling. "You…you little, dirty, undermining cheat! The next time you try pulling something like that, I'll…I'll…"

"Get a room first?" joked Viridi, folding her arms. "Y'know, Phosphora, if you weren't such a heartbreaker, I might feel sorrier for you. This is just comeuppance for the 1,337 men you've left empty handed."

"M-Mistress Viridi!" Phosphora exclaimed, kneeling in front of her superior. "It wasn't my fault! That dirty Casanova-wait, you've counted?"

"You do get around, I'll give you that much," Viridi admitted, shrugging her shoulders. "You're probably the most accomplished flirt I know."

"Aww, thanks, Mistress Viridi," Phosphora said cheerily, rubbing the back of her head in mock embarrassment. "It's just a way of life. Now as for you..." she hissed, turning on Yiorgos with both her palms sparking with electricity.

"Err, pardon *heh* me," an older voice said next to Phosphora and Viridi. Both turned to see Perseus standing next to them, wiping tears away from his eyes before speaking.

*Ahem* "I'd like to apologize for my colleague's rather unprofessional behavior. You see, he's a bit of a kleptomaniac, and he often feels to the need to retread those dangerous roads. Er, so to speak. He meant no harm by stealing your possessions, and I do hope that you won't roast him with a bolt of-"

*CRACK*

"-lightning," he finished, not bothering to look at the single ember left in Yiorgos' smoldering hair. Not wanting him to be uncomfortable, Berry reached up and pinched the ember, stifling its heat.

"Thanks, Berry," he muttered in a less than convincing manner.

Phosphora blew out the smoke trail from her index finger with a more relaxed expression on her face. "Oh, don't worry about it. Forgive and forget, that's my motto," she replied.

"I see that forgiving and forgetting is a rather painful process for the offending party," Dark Pit said offhandedly, prompting another lightning strike which he barely dodged.

A burst of blue fire and a puff of purple smoke signaled the arrival of Pandora and Thanatos. Thanatos quickly introduced himself to the fighters present (hey, whoever said that the god of death couldn't be sociable?) while Pandora crossed her arms with an annoyed look on her face. She had just begun to enjoy the stale, bitter air of the dungeons when she and her partner had received the news.

"Ladies, gentlemen, you're all the prettiest princess," Pandora said mockingly, though her slouched posture suggested an air of flippancy. "Now, if everyone's here, we should really discuss our battle plan. If not, I can wait. My reflexology class doesn't start for another two hours, anyways."

"Sorry about the delay, everyone. We got the message ten minutes ago and my friends are still filtering in."

"Roy!" Berry exclaimed with joy, running full tilt at the red fighter before squeezing him in a massive bear hug. Roy, although shocked at first, smiled and hugged her back, asking, "Hey there, pal. What's been happening? Haven't seen you since I rescued you from an angry mob."

Berry pulled herself away from her friend and began to rock back and forth on the balls of her feet. "Today's been amazing! First I went to a local ambrosia stand and it tasted awesome! Then I met Olivia and we decided to go to a weapon's dealer who was _totally _illegitimate, but I found a really cool staff! Here, loo-"

*BOOM!* *THUD*

Berry and Roy looked uneasily at each other, then at Pit, whose face had seemingly been replaced with a two-foot wide golf ball.

"Uhh, sorry! My bad." Berry said nervously as the golf ball dissipated in a poof of smoke, leaving a triangular pattern of dots etched across his face. "I need to remember that the trigger's in the head."

"Here, let me look at your face," Roy said, walking up to the dazed angel.

"If you ask me, it makes his face look better," Viridi joked, though there was a touch of sympathy in her voice.

He began to examine Pit's face for any serious injury, which was difficult since Pit was both struggling to stay upright and mumbling about eggplants. Roy himself shivered himself at the thought of the devil produce. Eventually, he pulled back, shaking his head. "Doesn't look bad to me, but I'm not the doctor here. Why don't we head to, uh...where are we going?"

"Mission Control," Palutena replied.

"Right, that. Once we get to Mission Control, I'll have Olivia look at Pit. She's new, but she knows more about healing arts than any of us."

As the group went inside the temple, Perseus quietly muttered, "Thank goodness that's over. If I had to stand through one more character reintroduction, I was going to pull my hair out."

"Ice...cream..." Pit mumbled as Palutena supported him through the gates.

* * *

"Alright, that should do it," Olivia said to Pit, who held a frozen centurion to his eye (Let's just say that an Aquarius Blade, a freezing mod, and more than a few bribes were involved). Both were sitting on the glass steps leading up to the launch door while the others were gathered in the center.

"Who knew that blunt force trauma could be cured with an Effect Recovery?" Pit remarked, already feeling his nauseating headache beginning to subside.

Rather than thank him, her lips tightened as she close up her own power board with an audible click and slipped it into a pouch on her belt. "You didn't suffer blunt force trauma; if you had, you would have bled out internally. You merely suffered a minor concussion, whose symptoms are similar to that of a confusion status: disorientation, dizziness, and double vision. It doesn't take a genius to put two and two together."

In a ruffle of cloth and leather, she shot up and stomped over to the rest of the group. Pit just stared at the space she had previously occupied, feeling more befuddled than Fairy Orbitars with a plus six confusion mod. Or, you know, just a few seconds ago when his face had been bashed in by an oversized Titleist ball.

Take your pick.

He let go of the centurion and stood up to apologize, ignoring the fact that the centurion had just recovered from the frost moments from shattering.

Pit was about to apologize to Olivia until Verne and Tyra sat on the glass steps behind him. Verne had chosen to dress in traditional fighting armor rather than his usual civilian wear, as had Tyra.

"Don't worry about it, Pit. She's just feeling a little upset since she isn't fighting," Verne said, leaning back on the glass steps. "You know, levitating quartz is quite comfortable."

Tyra nodded and replied, "You should see her in battle: she's a totally different person: fun-loving, easy going, more human. The arenas are where she belongs; she really doesn't exist well outside of them." She sighed, resting her chin in the palm of her hands. "I just want to be away from it all."

Pit stood for a few moments, ruminating over the advice of the two fighters. "Well, I guess that Olivia's going to be happy since we'll be fighting. I just can't believe the Aurum want a second go at it."

Tyra nodded with a satisfied smile until something made her face scrunch up with confusion. "Hold on, do you hear that?" she whispered, cupping a hand to her ear.

A high pitched whistling sound began to fill the air, interrupting both the conversation on the stairs and the conversations in the middle of the room. It started in low, then it started to grow, drowning out any other noise. In the same moment, the floor underneath began to shake and rumble, nearly forcing everyone standing to their knees. Several stones and panes of glass could be heard shattering outside the temple, which did nothing to slow the trembling.

At last, when the whistling could not reach a higher pitch and the quaking could not become more severe, an earth shattering crack could be heard impacting the surface world, followed by three more like it. Everyone rushed back into the courtyard, wondering what in the realms could produce such massive explosions.

Their answer come in the form of four enormous craters: one could be seen smoking within a large swath of trees just underneath the floating islands, while another was just beginning to cool at the shores of an expansive ocean. The other two were only visible by their smoke trails over the water's horizon.

"What _was_ that?" Berry asked incredulously, her mouth agape at the sight.

"I can't see anything past the smoke," Viridi said, squinting to get a better look at the impact site, "but I've got a pretty good guess as to what caused the explosion."

"A pre-emptive strike," Arlon pondered loud enough for the group to hear. "They're trying to attack us before we have time to prepare. I find it quite odd that Pyrrhon would fail to warn us of this primitive battle tactic..."

"We don't have time to worry about him! We need to act now, or who knows what the Aurum will do to the humans!" Pit declared, running back into Palutena's Temple. "I'll get a weapon from the Arms Altar; Verne, Tyra, and the rest of you should do the same."

The other fighters followed suit, with Olivia seeming quite eager to pick up a weapon. The commanders and goddesses hung back, allowing the others to charge ahead.

"Pit certainly is devoted to the humans, isn't he, Palutena?" the child goddess remarked, watching Pit bound forward and into the open doors, with the others close behind. "But why? I mean, they only ever praise him in times of need and then they either forget him-and you-or curse him for not delivering to their every need." If one were to look closely, he would see the faintest trace of rage and jealousy lining her features.

Palutena began to walk back toward the temple, following her own angelic commander. "Well, he's always had a soft spot for the weak ones and just wants to help them survive. More than that, though, I think he wants to make sure that a close friend is kept safe." the goddess said over her shoulder.

"A HUMAN friend?!" Viridi exclaimed, running to keep pace with Palutena. "What would an angel blessed by the goddess of light want with a filthy, dirty, two timing HUMAN?!" Her face was bunched up in hatred for the beings that had desecrated nature. Her nature.

Palutena gave a knowing smirk and replied, "Well, sure, he's a bit of a grouch with a mercenary's attitude, but I don't think that Pit could ask for a more competent partner. I only wish I knew why Pit would rely on the fighters instead of that friend."

With that, the rest of the commanders followed them into the temple...just before Pyrrhon arrived on the scene in an explosive flame.

"FEAR NOT, GODLINGS!" he announced with his handless arms on his hips. "Pyrrhon has just gone to examine the impact sites and has discovered some shocking news! The Aurum have launched a pre...pre-emptive…" His voice trailed off as he realized he was speaking to empty space. He scanned the terrace until he saw the entrance to the temple, or rather, its doors, hanging slightly ajar.

"AHA! The gods have gone into hiding! That must mean...YES!" He began to fist pump, not quite believing his good luck. "It's Pyrrhon's turn to save the day!"

With that, he turned toward the furthest plume of smoke and blasted off, leaving only his blazing image burned into the retinas of any onlookers.

Back within the temple,the realms' commanders and fighters had once again gathered in the middle of the room, with Palutena and Viridi standing in front of them all. Behind the goddesses floated a holographic map displaying both the surrounding terrain and four blinking red dots.

"Alright, everybody," Palutena said, brandishing a pointer made out of light, "Our current plans for an offensive strike have been put on hold. The Aurum have once again declared war on us, and once again struck the first blow. We have reports from my centurions and the Forces of Nature that four dropships have struck the Earth in four different places."

She swept the tip of her pointer to each of the different dots, displaying four 3-D models of the terrain surrounding them.

One map pictured a thick and dense forest, filled with trees and flowers of every terrain. Although partially shrouded, dusty paths were visible between swathes of vegetation. Different paths led to ruins, caves, and even hollowed out trees, some of which towered over the canopy. However, the largest path intersected a circular clearing filled with wildflowers, where the first dot blinked red.

Another map displayed a large group of jungle filled hills which eventually lead to a series of rocky cliffs. Two paths could be seen on the map: one led down the cliffs to an expansive shoreline with a long and thin archipelago protruding off of it, while the other followed a series of floating rocky islands that swayed with the breeze. Both paths, however, met at the same place: a large island with beautiful tropical vegetation and a collapsed oceanside coliseum. The second dot blinked within the ruined walls.

The third map showed a blisteringly cold mountain range, but these mountains were unlike any in our world. These mountains were like spires, tall and thin, and their peaks curled and twisted into themselves. Rather than being composed of quartz or granite, these peaks were made entirely of ice and snow. Sheets of frost laced between the spires like shimmering ropes, ropes which all eventually joined at the tallest spire in the range. The third dot blinked at its peak.

The oddest of the four maps seemed not to display anything, but rather fizzled and popped with static. A fuzzy model was visible every few moment before reverting back to a static state. What seemed to be visible was a series of waterfalls that cascaded over massive cliffs, but everything else was anyone's guess. The fourth dot refused to remain stationary, but rather travelled along the lip of the cliffs.

Viridi spoke up then, taking over Palutena's role as spokeswoman. "My children will be stationed at That First Forest, Palutena's centurions are on their way to Poseidon's Shores, and the Underworld Army will travel to the Olympus Mountains. Unfortunately, neither of us are entirely sure where the fourth location is, but we're pretty sure it's an area the humans call Fatal Falls."

"We have divided all able bodied warriors into four separate groups," Palutena said, stepping into the midst of the group. "Pit, Pittoo, you'll be partnered with Perseus and Tyra and heading to Poseidon's Shores."

"Woohoo!" Pit cheered happily, jumping up and down and punching the air. "Did you hear that, Pittoo? We're going to the beach!"

All his cheering only earned him a punch on the shoulder from Dark Pit. "Yes, I heard, dinglebrain. I just hope that you and I can enjoy it while dodging enemy fire _and_ trying to not die."

Viridi then spoke up, pointing at her own commanders. "Phosphora, Arlon, you'll be travelling with Yiorgos and Berry to That First Forest."

Phosphora's face went bright red with anger and embarrassment. "W-What?! Why do I have to go with that suave jerk? Can't he go with someone else?"

"Sorry, Phosphora," Viridi replied with a less than caring tone. "Yiorgos told us specifically that he specializes in claws, which should counter your less than stellar melee game." The little goddess shrugged her shoulders, barely concealing a mischievous grin, which did not go unnoticed by the electric commander.

"I'll handle the next one," Pandora announced, stepping up to the front. "Since the Underworld no longer has a Lord since a rather RUDE angel dethroned him (here she paused to shoot Pit a hateful glare), we have a new commander. This way, Thanatos and I can join in on the fun, too."

Pit put a hand to his chin, mulling Pandora's words over. "So if Hades is really dead, who could possibly fill in for him?"

Pandora gave the angel a wicked grin, advancing on him menacingly. "Oh, you don't know? Then again, why would you care to know? After all, you always only saw the Underworld as a place of darkness, a blot on an otherwise picturesque world."

She stopped just in front of the angel, who was actively trying to back away from the insane amazon. Unfortunately for him, Thanatos had snuck up behind him and held the angel against his will. Pit shiver, terrified, as Pandora stood at full height, towering above him. "Our new lord can't wait to meet you, Pit. Or rather, can't wait to meet you again."

"Alright, break it up, you three," Palutena said, prying the three apart. "Verne and Olivia, you'll be traveling with the Underworld commanders to the Olympus Mountains."

"Which leaves me," Roy realized, turning to the only other commander not yet chosen "And I'll probably be going with Cragalanche, right?" Cragalance said nothing, as rocks are wont to do.

"Very, perceptive of you," Palutena said with a bit of a condescending tone. "Normally, you'd be going with Pyrrhon, but he hasn't arrived yet. Plus, we haven't seen your eighth fighter yet. What was her name?" She stared at the crimson warrior, waiting for an an answer.

An answer which he did not provide.

It wasn't that he didn't like authority. On the contrary, authority always soothed him, kept him and the others in line. However, when it came to his team, sometimes rules had to be broken to keep everyone happy.

So instead, he avoided the question altogether.

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'll be just fine fighting with Cragalanche," he lied, knowing how much of a threat the Aurum really were. But he couldn't bring himself to force a close friend into a situation she wasn't comfortable in. Perhaps a bit selfish, but sometimes the best course of action would be no action whatsoever.

Palutena seemed unconvinced. "That really doesn't answer my-"

"Great!" Pit interrupted, eager to get out on the field, or in his case, into the sky. He quickly raced up the glass steps to the ornately carved stone gateway resting at its peak. As he approached the gateway, it slowly opened up with ancient creaking and groaning noises, revealing a beautiful tropical sky. "C'mon, Pitoo, what are you waiting for?"

"Uh, Pit? In case you've forgotten, we can't really fly on our own. We'll have to wait for Palutena to activate the power of flight."

Unfortunately, all Dark Pit ended up speaking to was thin air, as Pit had already leapt out of the doorway. The dark angel sighed as he followed his twin up the steps and peered over the edge, fully expecting to see Pit plummeting to his death.

Which is why he was shocked when Pit soared up in front of the door and hovered there, his wings aglow with the power of flight, and for the first time in his life, Dark Pit couldn't say a word. There was no snappy commentary, no witty insults, not even a begrudging apology.

"Isn't this cool? Let's go, Pittoo!" And with that, Pit soared off toward the beaches. Dark Pit stared a while longer, before eventually shrugging and jumping out after him him. His own wings began to shimmer and before he knew it, he too was flying.

When the two left, the gateway changed to display a cool and arid forest. Viridi turned to her own commanders, indicating that they should exit the doors as well. This process continued until only the fighters were left.

"So, uh, what now?" Berry asked, noticing that the gateway at the top of the steps was shut tight.

"Now it's your turn," Palutena said, snapping her fingers. Eight multicolored circles materialized on the floor of the temple. The fighters just stared at each other before Tyra sighed and stepped onto a glowing bronze circle. This simple action lit up six different mental lightbulbs, and soon everyone was standing within their own shining ring.

"Are their any questions before you take off?"

"Only two come to mind," Olivia said, glaring at Palutena. "Number one: we have a life in the arenas-"

"_You_ have a life," Verne muttered.

"-and I'm sure that the servers are probably filled with players who want to fight. So when will the servers be back up?" she continued, ignoring Verne's little quip.

Palutena merely smiled sweetly and replied, "Oh, don't worry about that. For now, let's just say that a Mr. Fils-Aime owes me a few favors."

Olivia, rather than seeming relieved, clenched her teeth and rolled her eyes. The moment soon passed, and she asked her second question. "Number two: in case you haven't noticed, we don't have wings. How exactly do you intend to get us to our destination?"

Both Palutena and Viridi gave each other mischievous grins before turning back to the group.

"How good are you all…"

"...at skydiving?"

With that, the eight rings disappeared from beneath their feet, revealing four different sets of terrain. Terrain that was, by the way, thousands of feet beneath them. Within a matter of milliseconds, all of the fighters were plummeting towards their destinations. Satisfied with their work, Palutena turned her attention to the angels, while Viridi teleported to her own sanctuary to direct her commanders.

Neither one noticed a green blur zip into a emerald portal before all of the portals closed up.

* * *

**Now, I'm sure that a lot of questions are going to be asked here, the main one being HOW ON EARTH CAN PIT AND DARK PIT FLY ON THEIR OWN?!**

**Don't worry. That question will be answered in due time, and sooner than you might think. **

**Also, I'm currently working on a writing style that will best accommodate the telepathic connection that two fighters, two commanders, and a god/goddess have. How much bandwidth does a telepathic connection have, anyway?**

**Also ALSO, in regards to the new Lord of the Underworld, I looking forward to writing the Chapter he's featured in. For those curious, he may not speak much, but he almost knows more about the passage of souls than Hades does. Did. He was also featured in the first game. Feel free to take a guess as to who this new head honcho is.**

**As usual, I hope you guys enjoyed reading my brainchild, and stick around for Chapter 4.**


	4. Chapter 1A: The Saviors of Light

**So...yeah. How about that one year hiatus, huh?**

**By this point, I think we can all agree that I can't keep ****schedules. I could blame a flash drive break, multiple computer viruses, and school from keeping me from this story, but I know that many, many authors work on their story regardless of these issues.**

**Regardless, I profusely apologize for the year-long hiatus. Sorry for making you wait so long, but here it is. The real beginning of Kid Icarus: Daybreak!**

**Kid Icarus and its characters belong to Nintendo and Masahiro Sakurai. (Zeus bless that man)**

* * *

**PART I: CUSTOS**

* * *

**Chapter 1A. The Saviors of Light**

A cold, dry wind hit the faces of Perseus and Olivia as they were dropped from the grounds of Palutena's temple. Olivia struggled to keep her body steady as she began to descent at an alarming rate. Perseus wasn't having much luck, either.

"_Welcome to the upper atmosphere, you two."_ Palutena said, watching over them from her temple. "_Please keep all arms and legs attached to your person at all times and enjoy your flight."_

The two plummeted through the upper atmosphere, their visibility hindered by the cumulous clouds that rose to swallow them up. Despite the height and thick clouds, Olivia could just barely see the ground below. Small floating islands whizzed by them, forcing them to adjust to the ever changing vertical terrain.

"Was this really necessary?" Olivia yelled, her words forcefully ripped out of her mouth by the wind. "I mean, really, we couldn't just get dropped off _on the ground?!"_

"_Well, I didn't want the Aurum to know that we were here, so I dropped you out of their sights,"_ Palutena replied. _"It should be smooth sailing until you hit the ground."_

"Wait. Hit the ground?" Olivia asked, scrunching her face up. "That…doesn't sound pleasant."

"_Hee hee. Don't worry about it," _Palutena giggled, apparently not too bothered by the gravity of the situation_. "I've prepared one of my patented Feather Falling Landing Zones at your landing spot. You'll be fine." _

"I'll be fine once we get rid of those robot freaks and I can fight again," the orange fighter murmured, not caring if the goddess could hear her.

By this point, Olivia had gotten the hang of skydiving, though the inconsistent breezes made her falter from time to time. Perseus had adapted to the fall as well, and he laughed and cheered, having never before known the feeling of flight.

"Ha ha ha HA HA! I never knew how to fly before, and now I don't ever want to go back!" he cheered, gliding left and right, feeling the cool droplets of the clouds brush against his face.

Olivia groaned in disgust. Honestly, could he not sense the seriousness of their mission? The entire world hanging in the balance…again…and all the fool could do was laugh like a moron.

She shook her head, hoping to dislodge those negative thoughts.

"_Focus, Olivia; we need to cooperate," _she thought to herself_. "Try studying your surroundings; it might help on the ground._"

"Hey, Perseus!" Olivia called back, "Mind helping me scout around? I don't want to be ambushed!"

"Sure thing, partner!"

"_Pit and Dark Pit are waiting for you on the ground," _Palutena informed the two_. "When you get close to touchdown, one of them will set off a few Celestial Fireworks so you know where to land."_

"Thank you, Lady Palutena," Perseus replied before dropping close to Olivia.

The two began to scan the rapidly encroaching beaches, having dropped below the cloud layer. A sparse jungle led onto a vast length of sand, which then merged with a vast ocean. A small island burned just off of the coast of the mainland, with a few white specks surrounding the island.

"I think we just found their base of operations," Perseus remarked, pointing out the pillar of smoke rising from the island.

"No really, Socrates?" Olivia snapped back, before mentally chiding herself for getting so tense. "Well, at least we know where to land."

"_Actually, you won't be going there,"_ Palutena said with a bit of regret.

"Wait, what?" both Olivia and Perseus exclaimed, nearly colliding with a floating island.

The goddess sighed, explaining, "_I know that we're not in _Kid Icarus: Uprising_, anymore, but dive-bombing into a small hive of Aurum is a death wish. We'll need to thin their numbers first_."

"Ah, come on, Palutena, I could take 'em!" Perseus protested with a smile on his face. He gave a few quick punches, but the sudden movement caused him to tumble head over heels. It took all of Olivia's strength to right him again; thankfully, Perseus seemed none the worse for wear.

The goddess of light chuckled at the sight of the two. _"While I appreciate your enthusiasm, there's no way you four are breaking in without fewer Aurum defenses. Besides, there's a far more pressing issue at hand. Can you see the city below?"_

Indeed, a massive seaside city was clearly visible underneath them. It spanned at least a mile across the beach, with dozens of crisscrossing roads forming a spider web within its walls. Houses lined the streets, and several columns of smoke rose from the chimneys on top. Three ports extended from the city, with all types of vessels lining the docks.

Upon closer inspection, Perseus could see thousands of tiny figures scrambling on the streets of the city. Humans were timid beasts when threatened, and a threat this large would surely have many running for cover.

A large beach stretched on for miles just outside the city walls; the humans who had previously been lounging on the shores now gathered where the water met the sand. Olivia's breath shortened as a few Blits wandered too close to the beach, scattering the humans. Perseus ground his teeth, balled up his fists and glared at the mechanized offenders with a burning hatred.

"They wouldn't…" Perseus growled, watching the Blits launch a barrage of missiles at the humans. Panic grew among the group, only making it more difficult for the Blits to land a shot.

"_By the time the humans in the city gather a rescue team, the Reapers will have gathered up every soul on the beach. As such, your first mission is to help defend the humans and their city," _Palutena ordered the two_. "Pit and Dark Pit are already starting to aid the humans, but they'll need your help. I'm sending you your weapons now."_

"Wait, how-" Olivia began, before noticing two small spheres of light floating above her shoulders. At that same moment, a thick column of light shimmered near Perseus' right hand. The two smaller spheres eventually settled into two turret-like cannons that floated on either side of her, while Perseus' column of light condensed into a thick, broad, and heavy sword.

"_Pit won't be able to set off any fireworks; you're going to have to guess where to land. So long as you don't made any sudden movements, I should be able to place a Landing Zone underneath you without much trouble."_

Olivia, deciding not to press the matter of heavy ordnance teleportation, straightened her body and dove with Boom Orbitars floating above her shoulders. A small circle of light appeared underneath the falling orange soldier before she landed in a small poof of sand.

Perseus waited a little while longer and watched the island, which continued to deliver hordes of Aurum troops. However, a little ways up he noticed a large Aurum troop rise from the smoke of the island. It slowly began to float over to the shores, and Perseus doubted that it was there to spew roses and rainbows at the humans.

"_I'd pay to see that, though," _Palutena chuckled, before noticing the contemplative look on Perseus' face. _"I take it that you have a plan, then?"_

Palutena couldn't tell if the wind acted up or the altitude was getting to Perseus, but all of a sudden his pursed lips broke into a huge grin, and his eyes widened like a Pluton stumbling upon a god's treasure stash.

"Just keep me up in the air for a few more moments, Lady Palutena, and I'll be sure to bring that…thing…down to earth."

* * *

When Olivia landed, the humans were still in a frenzied panic, scurrying left and right in vain hopes of avoiding the missiles that blasted the sand around them. Pit and Dark Pit stood on shores, diving their attention between directing the citizens back to the safety of the city and blasting away the pressing Aurum invasion.

Pit leapt in front of a cowering beach-goer, taking the brunt of a Jyok's laser. As quickly as the angel was incapacitated, his counterpart rushed to the man's aid, lifting him up and shoving him in the direction of the city. Unfortunately, the angels' divided attention left a straggling family exposed, and an Aurum missile made short work of them. Pit ground his teeth at the sight and leapt at the offending Blit. Before it could disappear, Pit eviscerated its circuitry in a flurry of gold shimmers and green static.

Olivia quickly went to work. As she passed by Pit, he nodded briefly, wasting no words on excessive greetings. She nodded back.

The orange fighter sprinted further down the beach. Suddenly, an Aurum Urgle erupted from the water, charging directly for a woman in a short white toga. Her screamed pierce Olivia's ears, but that didn't stop her from ramming the Urgle with her shoulder, sending it head over heels before planting its head in the sand. Two cannonballs from the Boom Orbitars rendered the mechanical beast inoperable.

Satisfied with her work, Olivia roughly pulled the woman off of her feet and pushed her in the direction of the city gates. Three more shrill cries sounded behind her; she turned, gasped in horror, and sprinted as hard as her legs would carry her toward a group of huddling children.

Unfortunately, a Blit's missile reached the children first, creating a sand cloud where the children once kneeled.

A shining blue arrow pierced the Blit, sending into the ocean to dissolve into static. Pit lowered his bow and stared at Olivia, who stared back with an equal amount of defiance.

"Well I got rid of the Urgle, didn't I?" the orange fighter said, folding her arms over each other.

"C'mon, Olivia, we've got save more humans! You too, Pittoo!" Pit shouted, adrenaline pumping through his veins. A few jyoks about to open fire on some humans were exploded by an arrow from his bow.

"What do you think I'm doing? Having a picnic?!" Dark Pit responded harshly, barely saving a mother and her child with a Reflect Barrier. "I can't protect everyone, Pit!" The black angel pulled back on the glowing string of his bow and fired a massive opal arrow, sending three Quoils flying through the air before being vaporized.

"Well, try harder!" Pit yelled back as he neatly bisected an Aurum Ahemum sneaking too close to the group. As the three continued to fight the Aurum and protect the humans, a giant white flying saucer began to glide toward the beach.

"You've gotta be kidding me…a Dohz?" Pit groaned, still trying to thin the Aurum forces. Soon, the Dohz had reached the shores, its sheer magnitude blotting out the midday sun. Its body hummed with a sickening reverberation, like the growl of mutilated lion. The angel, his counterpart, and the orange fighter braced themselves as three small glowing orbs of light dropped from the Dohz' belly.

A bright golden flash lit up the sand underneath the Dohz, and milliseconds later, its entire body was driven into the beach by a blur of pink armor and grey steel.

There was no doubt that the geyser of sand which shortly followed could be seen from the city's ramparts.

"Dear *haach* Zeus, what was *eugh* THAT?!" Dark Pit coughed, covering his mouth with the sleeve of his tunic. Pit, on the other hand, ran outside of the sand cloud and looked in, noting the carnation glimmer of a familiar fighter.

"About time you showed up!" Pit cheered as the thinning dust cloud revealed Perseus, with a massive Magnus Club balanced on his shoulder.

"_You can thank my Feather Falling Landing Zones for the safe trip_", Palutena said, smiling as she watched Pit run up to the buried dohz and high five Perseus. "_Now that the four of you are together, saving the humans should be a piece of cake!" _

"Alright then, let's get to it," Pit ordered, splitting his bow in half. "Olivia, you keep taking on the Aurum reinforcements. Perseus, clean up the troops that get by Olivia. Pittoo and I will get the stragglers back to the city. Everyone got it?"

Olivia tapped her foot impatiently, Perseus rolled his shoulders and grinned from ear to ear, Pittoo cracked his knuckles in anticipation, and Pit shouted loud enough for the Aurum on the burning island to hear.

"Let's do this!"

Olivia blitzed for the nearest Trybite and blasted it with a cannonball, neatly finishing off some Quoils hiding behind the lowly peon. A stray shot from a Trybite approached her from the side, but she dodged out of the way, skidding to a stop and digging up sand. Perseus leapt over Olivia and cleaved the Trybite in half.

Four Blits emerged from thin air, surrounding the two fighters. Each one opened fire and blasted the area where the fighters had stood.

Key word there is had.

Olivia and Perseus quickly teleported out of the small ring of Blits which, if robots have emotions, began to panic and frantically searched for their disappeared offenders. They didn't have the chance to look long, as a pair of cannonballs and a few hundred pounds of steel quickly terminated their existence.

Perseus glanced behind his back, thanking the gods that Aurum troops' attention had been diverted from the humans, allowing Pit and Dark Pit to file the humans toward the city with little trouble. Looking forward, however, his vision was blinded by a blinking ball of energy that flipped him head over heels.

Sand kicked up from his sandals as he landed feet first. Another shining ball of light sped toward him, but a quick swing of his club sent it flying back at the Trybite. It spun out of the way, leaving itself open to a good smashing by Perseus.

The two continued to fight until there were only a few troops left. This time, when Perseus looked back, he saw that nearly all of the humans had escaped into the city as Pit and Dark Pit ran back for the few remaining.

"Olivia!" he shouted, cleaving a Shemum high-tailing it off the beach. "We're nearly good to go! You finish off the rest, then follow me back to the city!"

"Umm…I don't think…that'll be necessary," Olivia said, her breath coming in short bursts. She watched the remaining Aurum turn tail and flee to the burning island.

Olivia turned back to the gate as two thin trails of smoke crept of the barrels of her Boom Orbitars. Perseus followed her, his shoulders slumped as he dragged his Magnus Club through the sand.

The two angels met the two fighters where gravel met sand, but the angels weren't alone. A small group of soldiers clanked up behind them; once the two parties met, the human soldiers dispersed around the beach.

"Wh-what are they doing?" Perseus stammered, even as he watched the soldiers pull bodies from the sand.

Pit put a finger to his lips, silencing any interruptions to the grim spectacle. The four could only watch as several soldiers slung bodies over their shoulder, their armor clanking as they grunted with exertion. None of the four dared to interrupt the proceedings.

A soldier with silver armor and a red plumed helmet broke off from the group of soldiers and approached the god-sent squadron.

"I take it that you are the saviors who protected our people in our stead?" the soldier asked, narrowed eyes staring at them through the slits in his helmet.

"You got that right," Olivia quipped, wincing as Perseus elbowed her in the side.

"My name is Pit, servant of the Goddess of Light, Palutena. Sorry about my friend's remark." Pit quickly apologized, offering a hand which the soldier shook. "I'm so sorry that we couldn't save more people."

"You are the angel Pit?" The soldier asked in surprise, before smiling and continuing to speak. "Well, do not fret, my winged friend and company. Had you not arrived sooner, I have no doubt in my mind that Lavrio would grieve over far more bodies. However, I am not sure that my kin will see this tragedy in this light." The commander said, sighing as he watch his comrades continue to help the badly injured and collect the deceased.

"So why are you here?" Olivia quickly asked, shuffling uncomfortably on her feet. "Something tells me that you didn't come here to provide an encouraging pep talk."

The soldier's lips turned upward as his solemn frown turned into a wry smile. He curled his fingers toward himself, indicating that the others should follow. "Your friend is quick to the point, but you are right; my original intent was not one of a hollow speech." He began to walk toward the city gates; the angels and fighters quickly followed suit.

"My commanding officer wishes to meet you and enlist your aid in the extermination of this threat," the silver officer continued, looking back at the soldiers that scurried up and down the beach. "Do not worry about my warriors; rest assured that they are fully prepare to combat another ambush should it arise."

Dark Pit arched an eyebrow in confusion and asked, "Wait, so who's your commander? And who are _you_, anyways?"

Though Pit's crew could not see it, the officer grinned ever so slightly as he replied, "My name is Theseus, and general Gaol would greatly appreciate your services."

* * *

**That's it for now. See you guys for the second half of Chapter 1.**


End file.
